A Vile History
by Captain Greene
Summary: What makes Vile tick? This story, which may be somewhat AU, endeavors to probe Vile's psyche and past. Rated T just for the fun of it, but there will be violence in some chapter in the future, of course. Chapter one is up for all to enjoy!


Chapter 1 - A Mad Russian's Christmas

Disclaimers are overrated.

Author's Note: This story may get to seeming neglected until I finish my main one. Don't be surprised if the updates aren't very frequent.

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A balding scientist with glasses in a white lab coat was examining a robot on a table. He was putting the finishing touches on his crowning achievement: an advanced humanoid robot, with the ability to think and act virtually like a human. To him, the benefits outweighed the risks. He was one of the first scientists to come anywhere near completion. Two others were working on similar projects, each with their own reasons, neither with terribly great success.

His daughter walked into the room. Though it contained all the trappings of a laboratory, it really was just a spare bedroom of his house. He worked for a major scientific company in his country. When not at work, this is where he spent his time, his office, of sorts.

He often allowed his daughter to accompany him, to teach her some of the finer points of robotry. Well, that's what he told himself, anyway. She didn't pay too much attention to robot-building, she was only ten years old. He simply enjoyed explaining his creations to someone, and she enjoyed listening, playing around with the bits and pieces that were strewn about here and there. He couldn't let much out to the press, for fear that others would try and steal his ideas and developments. His wife was busy doing wifey things, the things that keep the world turning, but nobody notices, because robots very often make the news headlines, and lunch, laundry, and dishes very often don't.

"What color are you going to paint him, Daddy?" the young girl asked presently.

"Hm, I don't know. What color do you think would look good on him?" the scientist smiled down at her.

The light-haired girl thought about it for a minute.

"Purple!" she cried happily.

"Purple?!" her father exclaimed in surprise, feigning disgust.

"Yes! I like purple! I think he would look nice!" the girl smiled up at her father.

"Okay, then. Purple, it is!" he smiled back.

"What's his name?" the girl asked.

"Well, I'm not sure, yet. Maybe we should wait and see when he's all put together," the man replied.

"I think we should call him, Pete!" the girl grinned.

"Hmm... I let you decide the color already, maybe I should pick his name!" the man said, raising his eyebrows questioningly. A smile crept across his face as he playfully tweaked his daughter's ear.

"Okay, I guess. How much longer will it be until he's finished?"

"Well, tonight, I'll add some major code to his logic subroutines, and probably about a week after that, he'll be ready. Just in time for Christmas."

"The Prime Minister will be so happy!" the girl said cheerfully, walking out of the room.

The man smiled.

"I hope so, Kalinka. I hope so."

"Oh, and Mom says dinner's ready."

"Okay, I'll be there shortly."

Dr. Cossack smiled. Life was good. He had a good job, a loving wife, a beautiful daughter, a nice house, and a fancy car. Even the wave of crime which was sweeping the nation, nay, the world of late, hadn't yet reached his secluded house on the outskirts of Siberia.

The man furrowed his brow. A recent crime wave had infected the country. Many believed it was due to the exploits of another scientist, Dr. Albert Wily, who seemed to be trying to take over the entire world, for some inexplicable reason. Others thought Wily's shenanigans were but a convenient excuse of which criminals took advantage.

Whatever the reason, crime was a danger throughout the land. For that reason exactly, the bespectacled scientist was working on his project. It was to be a gift for the Prime Minister. A robotic patrolman, the Prime Minister's personal bodyguard. Surely, besides protecting the country's leader, if the project was a success, it would lead to greater funding for his company and project, as well as fame.

After dinner, the scientist came back to work on the software for his project: his very own Variable Interactive Logic Environment system. This code was the true beauty of the project. It was intended to give the robot human-like logic and decision making capabilities, but that wasn't anything new or special. Dr. Light's MegaMan robot had this ability, and had, at one time, come close to breaking the first law of robotics: a robot may never harm a human, or, by inactivity, allow a human to come to harm. What the V.I.L.E. System had over that, was the ability to feel emotion, similar to a human. To feel love, hate, happiness, sadness... It was a whole new field, its possibilities yet unexplored.

Integral to the V.I.L.E. Project was another set of code, known as the Very Adaptive Virtual Application, which allowed the robot to learn from its experiences. This enabled it to make future choices based on the outcome of previous decisions. Between both V.I.L.E. and V.A.V.A. systems, the robot would be the biggest advancement in robot technology since the microprocessor.

Possibly the biggest thing the man desired to do was leave the android free of any preconceived notions. Dr. Light's MegaMan was hardwired for doing good, and all of Wily's machinations to do his bidding, which was predominantly evil. Dr. Cossack planned to leave every choice up to the robot, itself. Of course, he hoped that it would make the right choices, but that was part of the program's beauty. The robot would have truly free will.

He hoped, if the project was successful, to build an army of these robots for his country's law enforcement, to augment the vast but sadly inadequate police force already in place. In this way, he could get back at Dr. Wily. The mad scientist, Dr. Albert Wily, had once blackmailed him into trying to stop Dr. Light's robot, MegaMan, by kidnapping his one and only daughter, Kalinka. ProtoMan, another of Light's creations, had stepped in and put a stop to Wily's plan, narrowly saving MegaMan's life from Dr. Cossack, himself. Had he not, who knows what the outcome may have been? It wouldn't have been pretty, and likely would have resulted in jail time. If he did time in prison, he would lose his job, his house and car, and maybe even his family. The programmer momentarily closed his eyes. So close, but saved by Dr. Light's first robot.

Come to think about it, ProtoMan had a type of free will. He still was predominantly good, however, and had played hero many times.

Dr. Cossack had lost face, bigtime. The V.I.L.E. Project would hopefully restore the respect he deserved. Presently, he decided he'd done enough for one day. He shut down his computer, turned off the light, and walked into the living room, where his wife and daughter were watching a game show on TV. He smiled as he sat down on the couch beside his wife. He put his arm around her shoulder. She was the only one he trusted enough to tell his entire plan.

As the days passed, Dr. Cossack worked feverishly on his project. He finished the necessary programming, and proceeded to test it. Within an emulated environment on his computer, he threw every type of situation he could think of at his code. Of course, with the "free will" logic circuit, each situation had many possible outcomes. Though he had coded it himself, it gave him a thrill to see his program respond differently to the same dilemma each time. It logged the consequences of its actions. In later tests, the program based its course of action on its previous experiences, just as he had planned.

Within an emulated environment, it was a success. The next step was to load the data into the android chassis, give it to the prime minister, and hope for the best. There were so many things that could go wrong. The Russian scientist hoped that his creation would make the right choices. He was confident.

There were other dangers, though. With this sort of logic, the robot would need to be trained, just like a human. In fact, in many ways, it was but a child. Could it go to school with humans? How would they respond? What if the program didn't interface the hardware quite properly? Releasing the creation at all was quite a gamble.

This type of robot technology could prove quite useful, as the robot would not have a single, preset function. It could be trained to do many different jobs, and could learn new skills as necessary.

It was with great excitement that the Cossacks went to the capital that Christmas day, all of them dressed their best. A very large box, wrapped in bright, colorful paper, and with a red ribbon tied around it rode in the back of the truck.

When the group arrived, they were met by a small welcome party. They were escorted to the prime minister's garden, which had been prepared for this occasion. Sunlight glistened off the snow, which had covered everything in sight. Being here was a thrill all its own. The large package was placed on a podium. The prime minister removed the ribbon.

Under the wrapping paper was what appeared to be a coffin. The prime minister raised an eyebrow.

'Is this some sort of joke? Are you going to kill me, now?' he asked in mock suspicion.

'No! No, sir! In fact, if you'd like, I will open the lid for you, while you stay a safe distance away.'

'It's okay. I trust you. A renowned scientist like you wouldn't disgrace yourself or your company like that.'

The prime minister's gaze softened, though he maintained his serious air. He reached for the lid of the box. Slowly he removed the latch and lifted the lid.

Inside the box lay a robot, a humanoid robot the size of a man. Its purple armor had white features and was trimmed with gold. A full helmet covered his face, such that no facial features were visible. A portable cannon was affixed to its shoulder.

The prime minister's eyebrows rose. He'd never seen anything like it, except for news reels about the android MegaMan and his exploits. He never would have guessed that one of his citizens would produce one of their own, and that the government would receive it at no cost.

'It's a robot,' the well-dressed man stated the obvious.

'Yes. A robotic body guard for you. It is ready to be programmed for your service,' the scientist explained.

The two walked off, Dr. Cossack explaining the benefits of his creation, the prime minister listening in awe. Mrs. Cossack and Kalinka smiled at one another. They were soon escorted into the banquet hall, where they were served the Russian leader's favorite tea.

Soon, the men returned, and the Cossacks joined the prime minister's family for dinner. They enjoyed the most amazing meal ever to be had by non-aristocrats. Not even Mrs. Cossack could have prepared a better feast, though her husband would dispute that fact.

Afterwards, they would activate the ultimate project of human research, and the world would never again be the same.


End file.
